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Survey of major construction projects gauging need for skilled workers

December 2nd, 2013

The Commission on Economic Inclusion, a program of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, has launched an extensive skilled-workers demand study to gauge labor needs for major construction projects planned in the City of Cleveland with the goal of increasing local and minority participation in those projects.

The study is one of of several recommendations presented to the Commission in a special report issued in 2012 and is a key driver in helping work toward the job-creation goals of the Community Benefits and Inclusion Agreement (CBA) that has been signed by Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson, representatives from key business, civic, labor and trade organizations, and several public- and private-sector project owners. It is being conducted on behalf of the CBA stakeholders.

The Commission has engaged Mohr Partners and their consultant team of Weber Murphy Fox and the Upjohn Institute to forecast regional (Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain and Medina counties) trends in the construction industry from now through the year 2020. The forecast generated by the data collected will be used to improve skills training at the high school and college levels and provide a realistic picture of construction in the metropolitan area for the next several years.

“This study will help us understand the details of upcoming projects and the capacity of our labor force to meet those demands,” said Brian Hall, the Commission’s executive director. “We’ll be able to use the results to help training organizations more effectively fill the identified needs with local and minority workers. And we believe this matching exercise will benefit project owners, our workforce and our region’s economy.”

Groups being contacted to participate in the survey include developers, architects, engineers, builders, realtors, major public-sector capital improvement project owners at the city, regional, state and federal levels, as well as major private project investors in sectors such as health care and education, industrial/manufacturing, finance/commerce, and professional sports.

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